Carleton Condominium Corporation No. 396 v. Burdet (Ontario Superior Court)

This is a 33-unit commercial condominium.  The defendants are a group of affiliated owners who own 23 of the units – therefore controlling a majority of the votes in the condominium.  In 2002, an administrator was appointed to manage the affairs of the condominium corporation.  This action was brought essentially to determine amounts owing by the defendants to the condominium corporation under liens registered against the defendants’ units by the administrator (on behalf of the condominium corporation) – as well as the condominium corporation’s resulting rights to take possession of, and sell, the defendants’ units.

The Court confirmed that the liens were valid and determined the total amount owing under the liens up to August 31, 2012, at $289,070.37.  The Court also stated as follows:

Time restraints prevents this court itself making the multiplications and additions per unit required to record compounded interest per unit, which counsel are hereby required to complete in order to settle the terms and total of this judgment.

The Court accordingly ordered counsel for the parties to prepare a schedule setting out the arrears and interest to August 31, 2012 on a unit-by-unit basis. Counsel were also to calculate interest on those amounts through to the date of judgment. In the event of disagreement, the Court would determine those matters at a further hearing.  Further submissions were requested on costs.

The Court held that some of the notices of sale issued by the condominium corporation had been overstated, and were therefore invalid.  In those cases, fresh notices of sale would be required.  Also, because of separate ongoing litigation between the defendants and the other owners in the condominium (which litigation was soon to be resolved), the condominium corporation’s right to possibly obtain possession of, and to sell, the units of the defendants, was held in abeyance pending the results of that other litigation.